Scheffler unshackled for tilt at US Open, Schauffele waiting in wings
SCOTTIE Scheffler, freed of charges from his arrest outside the PGA Championship last month, enters the US Open at Pinehurst No 2 in North Carolina this week as the clear favourite, while Xander Schauffele hopes to build on his Major breakthrough.
In addition to building on an already remarkable year on the golf course, Scheffler will undoubtedly be hoping this week goes smoother than his time in Louisville, Kentucky, last month when he was arrested before the second round of the PGA Championship.
Thankfully for Scheffler, he can focus entirely on golf as all charges from the incident in Louisville were dropped after what a prosecutor agreed was a misunderstanding between the world's top-ranked golfer and an officer directing traffic.
The 27-year-old Scheffler, who won the Memorial Tournament on Sunday, counts the Masters among his five titles this year on the PGA Tour where he has finished outside the top 10 just once in 13 events and cemented himself as the pre-eminent force in men's golf.
And while Scheffler has never played Pinehurst No 2, he most certainly has a game suitable for a US Open – considered the toughest test in golf – having finished one shot back of the winner in 2022 and solo third last year, when he was three back.
But Scheffler will face plenty of challengers, perhaps none greater than newly minted Major winner Schauffele who is riding high after winning the PGA Championship, where his 21-under total marked the lowest score to par in Major history.
Schauffele has six top-10 US Open finishes but enters this one with a lot less baggage after silencing his doubters by shedding the unofficial title of “best current player to never win a Major” that had followed him around for years.
Among the other top contenders is Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy, who had top-10 finishes in each of his last five US Open appearances and is looking to end his 10-year Major drought. McIlroy failed to crack the top 10 at either of the year's first two Majors and enters the US Open fresh off a share of 15th place at the Memorial Tournament.
Tiger Woods, whose 15 Major championships include three US Open titles, accepted a special invitation to compete this week in what will be his fourth event of the year and first since the PGA Championship, where he missed the cut by eight shots. |